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submitted 3 months ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/news@lemmy.world

Summary

The White House Correspondents’ Association canceled comedian Amber Ruffin’s headlining appearance at its annual fundraising dinner.

The decision follows concerns over Ruffin’s anti-Trump comments and growing tensions with the Trump White House, which has restricted press access and pool assignments.

The association’s board voted unanimously for the change, seeking to avoid political division.

This shift mirrors its 2019 approach, when historian Ron Chernow spoke instead of a comedian amid similar Trump-era scrutiny.

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[-] wellheh@lemmy.sdf.org 6 points 3 months ago

Remember when they had Stephen Colbert roast GW during the dinner? That was peak comedy. These guys are such losers they know Trump won't be able to handle being roasted, and somehow that's OK for a world leader.

[-] ChickenLadyLovesLife@lemmy.world 4 points 3 months ago

Remember when they had Stephen Colbert roast GW during the dinner? That was peak comedy.

The best part is that they only invited Colbert because they didn't realize his character on The Colbert Report was a parody of right-wing pundits.

[-] wellheh@lemmy.sdf.org 2 points 3 months ago

The amount of people who didn't understand Colbert was performing satire was terrifying

[-] Mustakrakish@lemmy.world 5 points 3 months ago

Lmao "seeking to avoid political division". No you're avoiding dissonance. The GOP MO is to stoke political division, it's literally what gives them power.

Also "anti-trump" comments instead of just calling them concerns or critiques.

Language like this is how consent is manufacturered. Language is powerful at subtly shift how one percieves a situation, and leading people to a predetermined conclusion.

[-] art@lemmy.world 4 points 3 months ago
[-] SoupBrick@pawb.social 2 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Avoid political division

I mean, the line between parties is now just Anti-fascists | Fascists (Centrists are here as well. Silence is complicity.)

We even got an operational Gestapo

https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/29/us/rumeysa-ozturk-tufts-university-arrest-saturday/index.html

[-] orbituary@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Centrists are weak, feckless cowards who shift their position to accommodate each side. Pick a lane, assholes. We have a humanity to save.

[-] AmidFuror@fedia.io -4 points 3 months ago

It's authoritarians (fascists, progressives) vs. Political moderates (liberals, centrists). Just because the authoritarians are in two camps doesn't make one good.

[-] ImADifferentBird@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 3 months ago

Anyone who can look at what's happening right now and say "BUT PROGRESSIVES ARE JUST AS BAD" is either a fascist or a useful idiot for the fascists.

[-] NotSteve_@lemmy.ca 1 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Man what? Your Democrat party is basically right wing for the rest of the west. Are you saying every other countries’ left leaning parties are authoritarian? Canada’s Liberal party would be more progressive than the Democratic Party and they’re not even our most progressive party…

What you’re saying is the most ignorant, America-brained political take I’ve seen recently

[-] AmidFuror@fedia.io -2 points 3 months ago

I'm using hyperbole to mock the "centrists are fascists" mentality rampant in these parts of the Fediverse. The Republican party from the 1980s wasn't even fascist.

[-] NotSteve_@lemmy.ca 2 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

For sure and I wouldn’t call 1980s centrists fascists but at this point the US Overton window has shifted so far to the right that it’s hard to forgive anyone still in the middle. Like you have one party that’s brought on a billionaire to dismantle the government, threatening annexation of a number of sovereign nations, detaining people (not even convicted of any crimes) in brutal, torturous ways, and a million other horrid things; and then you have the other party that just kind of wants to keep things the status-quo.

If the former party is fascism and the latter is (sane) liberal conservatism, what would you call someone in the centre of that? Looking in from outside the US, I don’t see much of a difference between proponents of the fascism and the centrists. Like if I hear someone “in the centre” say “hmm well maybe Trump is right, we should invade Canada/Greenland/Panama”, I’m going to rightfully call them a fascist.

Important note: I wouldn’t say this applies to other countries where the Overton window isn’t so insanely far to the right

[-] AmidFuror@fedia.io -1 points 3 months ago

I would say the centrists are the Republicans who left the party over Trump, and the right-leqning Democrats. They exist. And they're not fascists.

[-] NotSteve_@lemmy.ca 1 points 3 months ago

the centrists are the Republicans who left the party over Trump, and the right-leqning Democrats

ಠ_ಠ

[-] floofloof@lemmy.ca 1 points 3 months ago

They're centrists! They're bang in the middle between pretty far right and very far right!

[-] rosco385@lemm.ee 2 points 3 months ago

Seth Meyers' jokes at Trump's expense during the 2011 White House Correspondents dinner have been identified by those close to Trump as the moment he decided to seriously run for President.

Seth Meyers made this problem, it's up to him to fix it. Bonus points if he gets Trump to quit using only jokes.

[-] catloaf@lemm.ee 2 points 3 months ago

Seeking to avoid political division... through appeasement? Has that ever been effective? The press truly has abandoned their responsibility.

[-] krebssteven@lemmy.world 1 points 3 months ago

‘Chamberlaining’ has never worked.

[-] gramie@lemmy.ca 0 points 3 months ago

I've heard persuasive arguments that Chamberlain did the only thing possible for Britain at the time. Their defense industry was just spinning up and they needed more time to have any chance at facing Germany. The Spitfire had only just started production, for example.

[-] punksnotdead@slrpnk.net 1 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Germany's military industry was also trash at the time. Buying time for Britain's defence also bought time for Germany's offence.

If France, Britain, etc did something sooner rather than later a lot of bloodshed would have been avoided.

The World At War is an incredible documentary that covers it quite well.

https://youtu.be/4AA0lWwTXNc

"Since the French spurned any notion of taking the offensive, the Maginot Line ironically protected Germany better than it protected France." Narrator, 8:10

"A few French divisions advanced 5 miles. But they didn't even try to penetrate the Siegfried Line, at that time still unfinished. And while Poland fought on, there were no German tanks at all on the Western Front." Narrator, 12:40

"If ze French Army would have attacked in beginning of September wiz zere very strong superiority in division in armoured cars well act all armoured cars in ze Western Front at zat time. In artillery, in air force, we ze German forces in the so called Western Front could stand no more than 1 or 2 weeks." General Siegfried Westphal, Staff Officer Western Front, 14:05

[-] lupusblackfur@lemmy.world 2 points 3 months ago

Once again demonstrating their collective cowardice...

Obeying in advance. Can't risk upsetting Don Mangolini. The Mafia Admin wins again.

🙄 🙄

[-] oh_@lemmy.world 1 points 3 months ago

Should just cancel the whole dinner. This is not normal times anyways.

[-] Neverclear@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 3 months ago

...seeking to avoid political division.

Yes, because Trump's platform is unity.

[-] chonglibloodsport@lemmy.world 3 points 3 months ago

That’s them being diplomatic. The truth is that they’re intimidated. Their speech is being chilled.

[-] CharlesDarwin@lemmy.world 1 points 3 months ago

If you think of "unity" like the Nazis think about it, then yes.

BTW, that's how they have been describing it to others online for over a decade, too...if people they describe as "Communist" which means, in the Venn diagram, anyone who is !Nazi = "Communist", would just agree to stop fighting fascists, there will be unity. Also, "peace". Interestingly, it's how one of the magoffs that worked on/supports Project 2025 talked about their plans, too. Oh, and Putin talks the same way.

[-] BossDj@lemm.ee 1 points 3 months ago

Wasn't it a correspondence dinner that is considered to be the day he decided to run for president because he was on the verge of tears being made fun of

[-] futatorius@lemm.ee 1 points 3 months ago
[-] Squorlple@lemmy.world 1 points 3 months ago

Instead just one comedian, you get house full of clowns

[-] SnotFlickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zone 0 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Trump has no sense of humor. The only reason he ever smiles and laughs is when he knows he's getting something over on somebody.

It's not a shocker that he couldn't even handle the mildest of criticisms from a comedian.

[-] sporkler@lemmy.world 2 points 3 months ago

The lizard suit wasn't even designed to do that, but he's such a great man he made it happen anyway.

[-] PurpleSkull@lemm.ee 0 points 3 months ago

I support that decision. What kind of jokes could a comedian make about all of this? About the resurgence of an autocratic state on the ruins of one of the first modern democracies?

Maybe a conservative, MAGA comedian could do it. But those don't exist. Ask yourself why.

[-] Otter@lemm.ee 1 points 3 months ago
[-] PurpleSkull@lemm.ee 1 points 3 months ago

That dude is less funny than Trump himself.

[-] Otter@lemm.ee 0 points 3 months ago

Sure, just giving you a MAGA conservative comedian. He has a massive and loyal fan base regardless of either of our opinions on him.

[-] cyphear@lemm.ee 0 points 3 months ago

If only George Carlin were still around. I bet he'd have a few words to say about all of this...

[-] Otter@lemm.ee 1 points 3 months ago

Bill Burr is probably the closest we've got today but his approach isn't as sophisticated as Carlin's was.

[-] cyphear@lemm.ee 2 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

The best thing about Carlin was that it didn't matter which party it was, he called them all out on their bullshit. Another one that was a good stand up comedian that we lost too early was Robin Williams. I remember him doing a movie where he played the president. It had a very "The Great Dictator" vibe to it.

[-] 3xBork@lemmy.world 1 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

They exist. They're just not recognized as comedians by those not in the cult because normal people don't see kicking down as humor.

this post was submitted on 29 Mar 2025
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